Please Don't Take Him, Even Though You Can
by bitterending
Summary: Songfic to The White Stripes' version of the song Jolene. Ishida has a talk with Orihime. IshidaxIchigo [[By the by, I am aware the White Stripes did not write Jolene, but their version works better. As it says in my author's note.]]


**Disclaimer:** I own nothing.

**A/N:** First of all, This is based on The White Stripes version of Jolene, which means a guy is singing it, which means it makes sense for this story. XD; Dolly Parton's version makes it a bit more of a stretch. If you haven't heard the White Stripes version and you're a fan of guy/guy stuff, you should totally look into it. :)  
Secondly, I'm not too sure I like this story. I wrote it at about 4:00am and it's pretty OOC. :/ I don't think I'm very good at writing Ishida. I'm a lot like Ichigo, so it's a lot easier to write him. While Ishida's my favourite, I'm nothing like him and therefore it's harder to get into his head. . ; ANYWAY. I'm blabbing meaningless excuses for bad writing. XD

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He was watching her again. Ishida had been expecting this, he really had. He knew from the moment that Ichigo came to him confessing that he was 'confused' that it wasn't going to be easy. He thought he was prepared for this sort of situation. He never got attached to anything. He tried to keep it as distant as possible. _It was just sex; _he tried to tell himself, but things had changed. He wasn't aware of when they did, but they were different now. Ishida scowled and cradled his head in his hands. Ichigo had been _his_ first.

_Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene.  
__I'm begging of you please don't take my man_.

Orihime was blissfully oblivious of their relationship. Everyone was. It wasn't her fault. They kept it under wraps because, after all, Ichigo wasn't sure that this was what he wanted. Ishida understood that. He didn't want to expect much from the relationship, anyway. It didn't mean anything. But still, something inside him stirred uncomfortably when he heard Orihime's voice that day.

"Ano…Kurosaki-kun?" It was timid and nervous. Ichigo, of course, was completely unaware of what she could possibly want. When he asked Ishida if he would have any idea, Ishida lied and said that he didn't. He walked home alone that day, afraid to wait for Ichigo to return. Afraid to wait only to find out that he wouldn't.

_Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene.  
__Please don't take him even though you can_.

She had told him, of course. Ishida hadn't stuck around to hear it, but he knew. She'd been in love with him for years…before Ishida was even a part of his life, she'd loved him. Ichigo must've come up with some sort of noncommittal answer, because she didn't seem particularly upset, but nor did she look particularly happy. She had her usual, relaxed smile plastered on her pretty face as she sat talking to Tatsuki animatedly about her dinner the night before. Tatsuki looked appalled, but interested–a face more often found when watching feeding time at the zoo.

Ishida merely watched as Orihime pressed on to what she had brought for lunch. Despite her disturbing past experiences, the girl was always so bright and cheerful, not to mention how beautiful she was, it would be no surprise if Ichigo wanted to be with her. She was perfect for him.

_Your beauty is beyond compare,  
__with flaming locks of auburn hair,  
__with ivory skin and eyes of emerald green._

With Orihime, there were no bad days, never any anger or bitter tones. She complimented Ichigo perfectly, and would most likely be the only person who could ever lower his temper. She allowed his protection and always wanted to help, regardless of the enemy. Ishida never wanted to _help_, he wanted to take _control_. He never wanted to be protected, and he never wanted to protect. He just wanted to hunt Hollows for the sake of it. There was never any nobility to it.

Ishida's attitude was the antithesis of hers: forever resentful over the death of his grandfather, even going so far as to take his anger out on Ichigo for it in the beginning. It wasn't like Ishida had any particularly handsome features, either. There was no reason for Ichigo to stay with him; what did he have to offer? He wasn't even entitled to his father's money. He would probably be better off with her, anyway.

_Your smile is like a breath of spring,  
__and your voice is soft like summer rain.  
__And I can not compete with you Jolene._

Ichigo ate alone for a long time after that, avoiding either of them at any time he felt threatened by their presence. Ishida assured himself that this did not bother him. For several days, he spent his lunch period in the library, leaving his food to hungry freshman who'd had their lunches bullied away by upperclassmen. It was almost a week before Ichigo stopped him in the hall. "I need you."

It was all he ever said, _I need you, _and Ishida would drop whatever he was doing and follow him. To the locker room, to the supply closet, to his own house. It never really mattered. Ishida didn't speak on their way to his house. He rarely did. Ichigo seemed distracted and rushed, but Ishida knew that if he were to bring it up, Ichigo would only deny that anything was wrong.

In spite of how long it had been, the sex was fast and over too quickly. Ichigo fell asleep afterwards, curled away from Ishida's body. When Ishida reached out to touch him, Ichigo called out for Orihime. Disgusted, Ishida pulled his hand away and turned to face the wall. He tried to think of something else to blame the tears on, but came up with nothing.

_And he talks about you in his sleep,  
__and there's nothing I can do to keep  
__from crying, when he calls your name, Jolene._

"Inoe-san." Ishida's voice was barely audible over the loud zip of Orihime's backpack, "I need to speak to you." Orihime looked up, slightly confused, but beaming in her usual way. She threw her backpack over her shoulder and nodded.

"What about, Ishida-kun?" Ishida didn't answer right away. He stood in silence for a moment, listening intently as the students cleared away. Orihime glanced at the crowded hall. As if on instinct, she placed her satchel back on the floor and walked over to close the door. "What's wrong, Ishida-kun?" She asked again, this time sounding a little more urgent.

_Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene.  
__I'm begging of you please don't take my man_.

Ishida took a seat at his desk, unsure of how to begin. Curious, Orihime sat down beside him, watching his face intently. Ishida sighed. It was always best to be blunt with her. "Inoe-san…I want to know your relationship with Kurosaki." Orihime blushed deeply and said nothing. "Please, Inoe-san…" Ishida pressed, "It's important."

Flustered, Orihime insisted there was nothing. "Well," she amended, looking at the seriousness in Ishida's face, "I mean…I guess I like him and all, but…he hasn't said anything to me since I told him. He said it was a great compliment, and that he'd think about it, but since then, not a word." She seemed so cheerful about it, as if she was expecting him to come to her any day now with his own love confession and a dozen roses. "Why?" She asked, alarmed after Ishida had been silent for too long, "Is something wrong?" Ishida swallowed and shook his head.

_Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene.  
__Please don't take him even though you can_.

"Yes." He admitted on second thought, "I mean I–I can't–" He stopped trying to speak for a moment, taking a deep breath. Embarrassed, he tried again. "I can't really explain it, but–"Ishida faltered when he felt tears begin to sting mockingly at his eyes. Determined, he kept talking, keeping his head bowed to hide his face. "Please, Orihime…" He hadn't even meant to use her given name, but it caused the girl to realize Ishida's severity, "Please, I need him."

_Well I can easily understand  
__how you can easily take my man,  
__but you don't know what he means to me Jolene._

Mortified, Ishida raised both hands to his mouth to muffle a shuddering sob. After a long pause, he tried to talk again, but his voice was still tainted with tears. "He's the first person who has ever treated me like I mean something to them," He gulped softly, feeling the back of his neck grow hot from humiliation. "I've never cared about anyone before, but he–" Ishida gave up the effort of blinking back the tears and let them stream down his face, folding in tighter towards his knees in vain attempt to disappear.

"He…he's all I have." Speechless, Orihime knelt down to look Ishida in the eye, but his hair fell like a protective curtain in front of his face. Ishida didn't even seem to notice that she moved. He was staring attentively at the floor, his hands fidgeting slightly against themselves in order to keep from covering his face again.

_Well you can have your choice of men,  
__but I could never love again.  
__He's the only one for me, Jolene._

The silence was killing the both of them. The tears were starting to make Ishida feel sick. It wasn't supposed to mean this much. None of it was ever supposed to mean this much. Ichigo was a brash, obnoxious Shinigami that shouldn't have meant anything to him. What was so different about Ichigo from the others, anyway? They were all self-absorbed obnoxious assholes, what was so special about that one?

"Ishida-kun…" Orihime finally whispered, causing Ishida's shoulders to tense. No, he couldn't let her speak. Not yet, at least. She would probably respond in a way that Ishida is not entirely prepared for. Unable to think of anything else to say, Ishida shook his head as if to force an idea loose from his brain. This had been a bad idea. He could hardly even breathe.

_And I had to have this talk with you.  
__My happiness depends on you,  
__and whatever you decide to do, Jolene._

Orihime seemed to be at a loss for words again as Ishida struggled to regain his calm. "I–I know it sounds like a lot to ask…too much." He murmured, feeling his chest tightening with anxiety. "And I know you probably don't understand entirely…" He paused, and then smiled a little. "Even _I_ don't understand it entirely." He added, wanting to laugh but afraid he'd fail at it.

_Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene.  
__I'm begging of you please don't take my man._

It was selfish of him, he knew. No matter what he told himself, Orihime had Ichigo first. She knew and loved him for what seemed like eons more than Ishida had even existed. He felt disgusting for asking such a thing of a woman. It was disgraceful. But the mere idea of letting him go made him painfully dizzy. "Now that I've–" With a heaving sob, Ishida fell forward, grabbing Orihime's arms as his forehead hit her shoulder.

_Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene_.

"Please, Orihime...Don't take him from me!" His sobs were loud now, and Ishida knew that Orihime was probably having trouble deciphering his words. He felt himself shaking and tried to stop, but he'd lost all self-control.

_"Please, don't take him even though you can."_


End file.
